CHILLICOTHE, Ohio — After more than a month of requests for information, the Chillicothe Police Department has released details regarding an early morning shooting that took place on October 1 on McKeller Street. The report outlines the events leading to the injury of a woman who was shot in the neck, allegedly by her boyfriend, Raymond Arthur Simmons Sr., 35.
Officers responded to a 911 call reporting a gunshot at a residence on McKeller Street around 3:41 a.m. Upon arrival, officers learned that a black Mazda had quickly left the scene. Police intercepted the vehicle, driven by Simmons, who was transporting the injured woman to Adena Regional Medical Center.
According to the report, Simmons initially claimed he was asleep when an unidentified person entered his room and fired a shot, unintentionally striking the woman. However, evidence collected from the scene, including a 9mm handgun found under a couch in Simmons’s room with a spent cartridge lodged in the barrel, did not align with Simmons’s account. Detectives discovered a matching 9mm bullet embedded in a pillow on the same couch.
In addition, officers found bags of suspected narcotics and drug paraphernalia in Simmons’s room. Both Simmons and another man in the vehicle were detained; the second man was later charged with drug paraphernalia possession and obstructing official business.
Following the investigation, Simmons was indicted by a grand jury on one count of felonious assault, three counts of having weapons under disability, and one count of tampering with evidence.